DOÑA ANA ARTS COUNCIL

March exhibit features Huber, friends, students

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The March art exhibit at Doña Ana Arts Council (DAAC) will feature artwork by Las Cruces artist and art teacher Wayne Carl Huber and eight of his students: Joy Calvert, Penny Duncklee, Jane Grider, Richard Harris, Maria Lopez, Carmen Navar, Beverley Pirtle and Ana Maria Uranga.

The exhibit will be available for viewing 9 a.m.-5 p.m. March 1-26, at DAAC’s arts & Cultural Center, 250 W. Amador Ave., and noon-5 p.m. Saturday, March 13.

 “This group of artists present an impressive résumé,” said DAAC Executive Director Greg Smith. “Several are signature members of the New Mexico Watercolor Society (NMWS), and most have received awards. Their work has been seen nationwide and outside the United States. Visitors will have the opportunity to see landscapes, figurative work, abstracts and still lifes, all with vibrant colors and various mediums.”

Huber started his art career at the University of Michigan and eventually finished with a degree in art education from Eastern Michigan University, DAAC said in a news release. After teaching for a few years, he earned a master’s of fine arts degree from the University of Arizona in Tucson. In the 1970s, he started teaching at the collegiate level in St Louis.

Huber’s career includes representations in galleries, many one-man shows, group shows, juried exhibitions and awards for his work, DAAC said. Since moving to Las Cruces, he has taught at the Las Cruces Museum of Art, El Paso Museum of Art, Doña Ana Community College and private art classes.

NMWS signature member Calvert has studied with David Drummond, Tom Jones, Ken Hosmer and Jeanne Hyland. Her work can be found in private collections from California to North Carolina, and she has won awards in several regional shows, DAAC said. Calvert serves on the board of NMWS’s southern chapter.

Duncklee has illustrated and painted the covers of books and magazines and shown her work both regionally and nationally, winning awards. She is an NMWS signature member.

Grider's education includes coursework at the Chicago Art Institute. Grider uses both pastel and watercolor to create landscapes that reflect the local scenery.

Harris, a self-taught artist, captures the elegance and magic of birds. He has received formal training from Julie Ford Oliver and Nancy Begin. Harris works in watercolor, acrylic and water-soluble oil paints.

Lopez, a retired teacher, often integrated art into other subjects to stimulate her students' interest in learning. Upon retiring, she began painting landscapes in oil and now paints mostly stylized portraits and figures in acrylic. She focuses on color, lines and shapes to guide the process of discovering her subject matter.

Navar, an award-winning, multi-media artist, recently received a bachelor's in fine art degree and a degree in multidisciplinary studies in drawing from the University of Texas at El Paso. She has been in various solo, juried and non-juried art shows in El Paso, Mexico, Latin America and at the UTEP Glass Gallery. Navar teaches art from her home studio and believes strongly the arts can be used to heal.

Pirtle has been taking art workshops since 2007 and achieved NMWS signature status in 2018. She loves to paint expressive landscapes, animals and florals. Pirtle paints mainly in the wet-to-wet style, allowing the medium to guide her work. She often adds details after the paint dries.

Uranga, a member of the Artist Guild of New Mexico, has studied art at New Mexico State University, Northern New Mexico College and in northern California. Her work, influenced by Impressionists' study of color and light, captures the dramatic movements found in nature.

Call 575-523-6403 or visit www.daarts.org.

Doña Ana Arts Council, Wayne Carl Huber

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